Author wins lawsuit against U of Regina professor who called book 'racist garbage'

Alexander Quon · CBC News

· Posted: Jun 19, 2025 6:00 AM EDT | Last Updated: 1 hr ago

The writer of a self-published publication captious of the Neil Stonechild enquiry has won a defamation suit against a University of Regina prof that called it "racist garbage."

In an interrogation connected Wednesday, Candis McLean said she's precise delight with the determination issued connected June 13 by Justice Neil Robertson astatine the Court of King's Bench

"It's a somewhat delayed absorption due to the fact that it's been 8 years successful the coming. I launched the suit successful 2017," McLean said from her location successful Calgary.

"But I'm precise pleased due to the fact that I consciousness this sends a connection to activists who consciousness they tin get distant with anything."

'Racist garbage'

In 2016, McLean published a publication titled The Cold Hard Facts, which challenged the conclusions of the Neil Stonechild inquiry, which recovered the Indigenous teen had been successful the custody of constabulary the nighttime helium died successful November 1990.

McLean's publication claims to exonerate the 2 officers dismissed by Saskatoon constabulary successful the aftermath of the ungraded implicit a constabulary signifier known arsenic "Starlight Tours," wherever officers would driblet disconnected intoxicated radical connected the edges of municipality successful freezing acold temperatures.

McLean arranged for four signing events successful Regina for the book, but was opposed by the Saskatchewan Coalition Against Racism.

One of the radical who took portion successful the run was Michelle Stewart, a prof astatine the University of Regina. Stewart called lawsuit venues and urged them to cancel the signings. She also made a station connected societal media describing the publication arsenic "racist garbage." 

Robertson's determination says that though Stewart's remark was directed astatine the publication itself, "it is tenable to widen the slur to [McLean]." 

Robertson wrote that Stewart did not read the publication earlier describing it arsenic racist. Robertson work the publication and wrote that helium did not find contented that could enactment that allegation.

The determination says that since "racist" is simply a charged connection not meant to "be thrown astir carelessly," Robertson was capable to find that Stewart had defamed McLean.

The determination says Robertson would not person awarded damages had Stewart made a punctual retraction apology, since the defamatory connection was lone made successful a azygous station and was an indirect attack.

"However, successful this case, I find that a nominal wide harm grant is due to deter others who mightiness beryllium tempted to beryllium arsenic reckless successful their language," Roberston said.

Along with violating the tort of defamation, Robertson recovered that Stewart violated the tort of inducing a breach of declaration by contacting and urging venues to cancel McLean's signing events.

McLean had sought $165,642 successful damages arsenic portion of the suit. Robertson awarded her the acold smaller sum of $6,450: $1,000 successful wide damages for defamation, $3,000 successful wide damages for inducing breach of declaration and $2,450.02 in actual damages resulting for inducing breach of contract. 

McLean was not grant immoderate wealth for special, aggravated oregon punitive damages. 

"I spent a batch of wealth connected it and didn't get ample damages. But my fantastic lawyer, Tavengwa Runyowa, said to me, 'Yes, but remember, we're warring this for a principle, a rule of escaped speech,'" McLean said.

Stewart did not supply a effect to the determination to CBC by the clip of publication.